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BBA 2023 Nominees: Responsible Business

Written by BCCJ
October 12, 2023
British Business Awards

By the conclusion of the British Business Awards 2023 (#BBA2023) nomination period, we had received 45 eligible nominations across 6 categories.

The following 12 companies are now in the running to lift the BBA Responsible Business trophy.

“Open to any eligible company that has driven exceptionally effective responsible business (social/environmental) programmes or initiatives in Japan over the past 12 months. Applicants should not be NPOs.”

BBA 2023 Responsible Business

(In alphabetical order)

AstraZeneca K.K.

Our future depends on the health of people, society and the planet. With this belief, AstraZeneca Japan (AZKK) has been leading the way in and beyond the industry in achieving zero carbon emissions, while making unprecedented progress by pioneering the use of clean energy, adoption of EVs, reduction of paper usage and promoting digitalization.

Atsumi & Sakai

Atsumi & Sakai seeks to ingrain the principles of ESG and SDGs into all aspects of its international full-service legal practice. In recent years, the firm has made considerable efforts to contribute to building a sustainable and better society for all. The firm’s strong contribution and commitment to ESG and sustainability were recently recognised, when Atsumi & Sakai became the first law firm to win the prestigious “ESG and Sustainability Law Firm of the Year” award at the Asian Legal Business (ALB) Japan Law Awards 2023.

Barclays

In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic that caused economic and social disruption, Barclays in Japan has continued to help vulnerable communities through a recovery phase while ensuring our regular employability programme continues to support the underserved.

Custom Media

Custom Media pro bono supports NPOs that help disadvantaged youth, abused animals, the environment, refugees, and young business leaders. It also extensively discounts work for causes like mental health and children with cancer and their families. Custom Media’s founders also volunteer as chairs, directors, mentors or consultants for several NPOs.

Drax Group PLC

One year on from the launch of Drax Asia Japan K.K., with a permanent office headquartered in Tokyo, Drax has been proud to be a reliable and resilient supplier of biomass, meeting all commitments and supporting businesses to phase-down the use of fossil fuels. Drax has delivered responsible business initiatives to support Japan on its decarbonization journey and help the nation phase down on coal.

ES Global Japan K.K.

ES Global Japan KK is proud of its ground-breaking approach to sustainable innovation. Their pioneering design of semi-permanent structures, which will contribute to the expansion of Japanese construction industries, not only showcases architectural excellence but also underscores a commitment to eco-conscious, long-lasting structures that redefine event sustainability standards.

EY Japan

EY Ripples embodies the EY purpose, Building a better working world, and aims to positively impact one billion lives by 2030. We impacted 46 million lives globally in FY23 alone, with more than 139,000 EY people (including 2,300 from EY Japan) sharing their skills and expertise through EY Ripples initiatives.

Hilton

Travel with Purpose (TwP) is Hilton’s Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) to drive responsible travel and tourism globally. Through Travel with Purpose, we seek to create positive environmental and social impact across our operations, supply chain, and communities. We are committed towards a net-zero economy and reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.

Johnson Matthey

Our company purpose is to catalyse the net zero transition because we believe this represents the biggest benefit we can bring to society. In addition to this, locally we have a heavy focus on employee engagement and supporting local communities through volunteer activities.

Tag Japan Ltd

At Tag, we know we have serious responsibilities. We want to drive meaningful change through our work and by supporting our clients in achieving their environmental objectives. We believe we can affect positive environmental change within Japan and within the supply chain, to make certain we are more than a responsible business.

Unilever Japan Holdings GK

Our purpose is to make sustainable living commonplace. We’re taking action across our business and value chain and we’re urging others to join us to accelerate the transition to a net zero economy. By sharing our initiatives with partnership, we hope to inspire others to join us together.

VP Advisors KK

VP Advisors KK has one goal; to promote economic development in rural Japan. After successfully raising ¥130million in 2021 (~80% spent on building the facility), VP Advisors led by Violet Pacileo, built a CrossFit retreat in one of the most economically depressed mountain communities in Japan; Otoyo, Kochi Prefecture.

Judging

The decision on a winning BBA 2023 entry is the result of the combined score of 6 separate judges, who independently score assigned submissions using the same scoring matrix.

To ensure transparency, each judge independently returns his or her score sheet to the BCCJ office by October 27 2023 and the results are tabulated confidentially. The scores from each judge are then totalled for each nominee, and the nomination with the highest accumulative score is declared the category winner.

In the event of two nominees receiving the same final score, all judges will be asked to review their scores for these companies/individuals, and the submission with the highest score from this second round of judging will be declared the winner.

The final results remain confidential until the BBA ceremony – held on the evening of November 2, 2023. To book your space at the Awards, please register via the bookings page HERE

Judges

Introducing our BBA 2023 judges – a truly great lineup of accomplished leaders who are actively engaged in bolstering UK-Japan relations! This esteemed panel of judges are currently putting into practice their expertise and specialist experience to decide which companies and individuals should receive a prestigious BBA trophy. Judging period October 9 – October 27.

Hiroyo Hiramatsu | Director, Numbering Plan Office, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications
Kazuki Yamada | Conductor, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
Greg Clark | UK Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy to Japan
Moriaki (Mori) Kida | Chairperson and CEO, EY Japan
Mitsuru Claire Chino | Managing Executive Officer General Manager, Corporate Communications Division, ITOCHU Corporation
Lubna Shuja | President of the Law Society of England and Wales & Nick Emmerson | Vice President of the Law Society of England and Wales